Pipe Music Takes Center Stage

Mark Aug. 13 on your calendar if you’re a fan of, or just plain curious about, pipe music. That’s when the Kutztown Pipe Band will take the stage at the Kutztown Park Band Shell for its sixth anniversary concert. Says Pipe Major Laura Sherrod, the open-air venue is ideal for the volume level of a pipe band as bagpipes are very loud instruments, coming in at around 116 decibels, and the accompanying snare drums at 122 decibels. Of note: the threshold of pain for hearing is 130 decibels. Band members, appropriately, play while wearing hearing protection. The show will be a two-hour affair as part of the Kutztown Concert Series and will also include the Kutztown Celtic Session. Those involved with the Kutztown Pipe Band are part of a teaching and learning group call it hands-on training of sorts. Interested individuals can take advantage of free intro-to-piping lessons. Students can also transition past the introductory level and become performance members. Says Sherrod, “It typically takes 6 months of working on the practice chanter in our introductory group before a student is ready to transition to the bagpipes." Want to learn more about playing with the band or get the quarterly newsletter? Email friends@kutztownpipeband.com. –

NIKKI M. MURRY